Mohegan Sun buys naming rights at Pa. arena

Mohegan Sun will extend its brand in Pennsylvania, having won the naming rights to the leading entertainment venue in the northeastern part of the state, Wilkes-Barre's Wachovia Arena.

The arena, about a five-minute drive from Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, the harness racing track where Mohegan Sun introduced slot machines in 2006, will be officially renamed Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza on Jan. 20, 2010.

The deal, approved Wednesday by the Luzerne County Convention Center Authority, which owns the arena, will link the Pocono Downs facility to a "premiere entertainment destination" that's similar in size to Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut, Bobby Soper, president and chief executive officer of Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, said Thursday.

The Wilkes-Barre arena has more than 8,000 permanent seats and a capacity of nearly 10,000 for concerts, according to its Web site. "A-list" acts that have performed there during its 10-year history include Bon Jovi, Cher, Elton John, The Eagles, Rod Stewart and
Bette Midler.

"It's not only a branding opportunity but also an opportunity to leverage each other's respective properties - and (customer) databases," Soper said. "We'll be front and center on all the arena's advertising."

Mohegan Sun made a pitch for the naming rights because of the arena's proximity to Pocono Downs but also because of the arena's prominence in the region and its history as a catalyst for community growth, he said.

Soper declined to specify the financial terms of the 10-year naming-rights agreement, saying it has not yet been finalized.

Several other entities also bear the Mohegan Sun brand, perhaps the most prominent being the Connecticut Sun, the women's basketball team that plays at Mohegan Sun Arena. Through sponsorships, the casino has also lent its name to the Mohegan Sun Grandstand, an outdoor track and concert venue that can seat up to 17,000 people at the New York State Fair in Syracuse and to the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar at the new Yankee Stadium, which opened last April.

"Obviously, we position ourselves to be more than just a casino," George Galinsky, vice president of advertising and public relations for Mohegan Sun, said Thursday in discussing the casino's brand. "Our focus-group research has told us that consumers are looking for ways to relax and have fun, though the definition of what's fun is different for everybody. For some it's gaming, for some it's spas and shopping, for some it's entertainment."

Asked what the Mohegan Sun name stands for, Galinsky said, "I usually answer that by starting with what we don't stand for, which are some of the common perceptions about casinos — that they're pretentious, exclusive, cheesy or tacky."

He said Mohegan Sun has sought to align itself with things that are not typically associated with casinos, such as the basketball team, book-signings and Davis Cup tennis.

"I'd like to think we're a playground for adults," Galinsky said.

b.hallenbeck@theday.com